Alone and Lonely
by Bear3126
Summary: Ron feels truly alone for the first time in his life. Who will be there to show him that he isn't? All chapters have been revised and reformatted.
1. Ron

AN This is the first chapter of many. The first three chapters of this story all take place on the same night, but from different characters points of view. Enjoy!

I own nothing but the story. The characters are property of Disney.

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Lightning flashed across the sky momentarily lighting up the young mans eyes. He blinks quickly trying to get rid of the afterimage caused by the lightning reflecting off of his tears. He turns his head and looks back into his room before sighing and wiping the tears from his eyes. Silently he wishes Kim was there with him. But since she had started going out with Josh more then 4 months ago it seemed like she was drifting further and further away. At first it was nothing really. A few days without a phone call here, canceled movie night there. But they started to add up quickly until he was lucky to even see her at all these days.

But that wasn't why he was crying. He has realized long ago that he was deeply in love with his best friend. And for as much as he wanted to be the one going out with her, he knew that the amount of time they had spent together over the last 15 years would likely lead to them being uncomfortable in more intimate situations. He knew that she was happy with Josh. He treated her with the respect and understanding she deserved. It had taken Josh a While to warm up to him always being around Kim but they had eventually become almost friends. Josh was one of the few people who did not make fun of him on a daily basis back in high school and despite being only one letter away from a monkey, he was grateful to him for that. As much as Ron was hurt from watching them together, he was glad that Kim finally seemed to be truly happy.

"If you love her that much, then you have to let her go." He still cringed somewhat when ever he thought of those words. Those few words had led to him feeling truly alone for the first time in 15 years. Sure he had his parents to talk to, but they were halfway across Middleton at the moment; he was on the outskirts of town at the base of the foothills that surrounded the Tri-City area. Kim had always been the person that he went to when he was feeling down or needed someone to talk to. And while she said she would always been there for him, he still felt bad dumping his problems on her shoulders. Monique and Felix had been there for him as well but they were a couple now and living in California while Monique worked on her fashion design degree.

He wanted someone to be there to hold him at night. Someone to be there when he had a bad day. Someone that he could hold and comfort. Some one...just to spend time with. Some one to love who loved him back. But his "loser" status in high school seemed to put more of a damper on that wish then he had realized. Most girls that he talked to at the clubs and bars around town barely gave him a second look after they realized that they were talking to the 'school loser'. He wondered just how long it was going to take to out grow that label. It had been 3 years since they had graduated and it still felt like he was there when he talked to his old class mates. The exclamations of "loser" and "dweeb" would ring in his ears long after he walked off. If possible those words hurt him more now then they did back then.

Silently he looked at the clock and sighed as it read 2:47 in the morning. He had work in 6 hours and knew he needed to get some sleep, but his emotions refused to let his mind calm down enough for that. It had been almost 2 years since he and Kim and retired from the hero game to focus on college. They still went on missions occasionally but those were few and far between, the last one was almost 2 months ago. They only worked the really important ones now. The ones that the new generation of crime fighters he and Kim had trained didn't have the experience to handle. He looked at the communicator and briefly thought about calling Wade. But at this late hour the now 16 yr old super genius would probably be asleep if he wasn't working on a mission. Either way he did not want to disturb him

Grunting slightly he hoisted himself off of the couch and retrieved a small notebook and pencil from the desk. Sitting back down he looked out the window again before turning back to the paper in front of him. Blinking back another tear he began to write.

I sit alone and look around  
A single tear rolling down my cheek  
I hang my head and close my eyes  
Crying out in silent pain

I think of all the people in the world  
Laying down holding their loved ones close  
Knowing that they will be alone no more  
Sighing contentedly as they slip off to sleep

I look out my window wondering  
Is there someone out there for me  
Someone for me to hold close  
To bring me out of this cold gray existence

I ask why  
Why am I alone in this world  
The tears fall steadily now  
For no answer has ever been given

Is it too much to ask  
To just have someone to hold  
To make me feel warmth again  
To make me feel alive

The rain starts to fall  
Drumming on the roof  
I pull my knees to my chest  
Wrapping my arms around them tightly

I feel as though I am a ghost  
Wandering through this world  
Passing by unnoticed  
Wondering why I have stayed behind

I stand slowly and walk outside  
Feeling the cold rain hit my face  
Blending in with the tears  
Plastering my hair around my head

The rain falls harder now  
The wind rocking the trees back and forth  
And still I stand there  
Looking out across the field

I fall to my knees  
Looking towards the iron gray sky  
Eyes full of pain  
My body shivering slightly from the cold

"Why" I scream  
"Why am I alone in this world"  
"Why cant I just have someone to hold"  
"Why"I slump over, my head hanging in defeat

My body wracked with sobs  
As I cry unrestrained  
I slam my fist into the muddy earth  
Still no answer

Looking at what he had written Ron wiped another tear from his eyes and set the notepad down. He didn't know why but writing seemed to help him manage, it still hurt though. Getting up off the couch again he grabbed the paper and tossed it back on his desk as he made his way to his bedroom. Stripping down to a t-shirt and boxers he cracked a window so he could listen to the a storm and crawled into bed. He lay there staring at the ceiling for about 10 minutes before breaking down and rolling over to clutch his pillow to his chest. "Why am I alone" he said chokingly as he cried himself to sleep.

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AN This is my first FanFic. Based around a poem I wrote during one of the darker periods in my life. Please R&R


	2. Kim

Kim Possible sat in an old, well worn recliner and listened to the storm outside. Sighing quietly to herself she let the book she had been reading fall into her lap as she looked out the window just in time to catch a brilliant flash of lightning cut across the sky. Blinking slowly and mentally counted off the seconds till a thunder peal ripped through the mesmerizing sound of the rain on the roof. "Bout a mile

off or so" she thought to herself as she looked back at her forgotten book in her lap. Suddenly she didn't feel much like reading. She looked towards the couch where she could see Josh's form sprawled out across it length.

She watched him for a moment just as another flash of lightning lit the sky filling the small room with light. Shaking her head slightly she looked back out the window and thought of a sandy haired boy. Smiling softly she remembered how he had tried to get her to go outside in a storm just like this one and dance in the rain. She wondered what he was doing right now. He loved thunderstorms; something about the raw power of nature and the peaceful sound of rain falling. She couldn't remember the exact words.

Sighing again she pulled her legs up into the chair and leaned her shoulder against its back. The last time she had sat and talked with him was shortly after their last mission together.

*Flashback*

They had met at the park that day, he arriving there before herself. As she walked along the path she caught sight of his blonde hair as he sat on a bench under a massive oak. He was leaning foreword resting his elbows on his thighs. She had stood there and watched him for a moment. Having known him for the better part of 15 years she had come to be able to read his body language like an open book with extra large print, not that he ever really tried to hide anything from her. And right now she could see that he was troubled by something.

Frowning slightly she approached him quietly till the snapping of a twig gave her away. His head rose a few inches and turned slightly.

"Nice try KP" he said jokingly but without much conviction in his voice.

Smiling, she approached him and sat down. "What's up Ron?" Her voice lacked her usual spark and she knew he could tell.

Plastering on his best smile he looked up at her. "SSDDBP, you?"

She looked at his curiously. "I'm good. Are you channeling Monique or something?"

"Same stuff, different day, bigger pile" he replied chuckling slightly

"Ahh, How goes things in your world"

"Could be better, could be worse. Bout the usual. I got promoted to head chef last week but me and the manager are having some...creative differences as far as presentation of some of the dishes goes" He said as he turned his head looking off across the lake.

"Such is the way of things I suppose. Congrats on the promotion though. I knew you could do it." She looked at him her suspicions now confirmed. He never just stared off into the distance unless he had a lot on his mind.

"What about you?" he asked not looking back at her.

"Bout the same actually. College classes are going good but I think I really need to cut back on my course load next year. I barely have enough time to study and get some sleep. Josh has been kind of edgy about that, He seems to think I am intentionally trying to spend less time with him." She frowned slightly as she noticed him stiffen at the mention of Joshes name. At least now we are getting somewhere she thought. "I mean, Josh and I are getting along fine and everything, but he can get a little clingy and childish about me not spending time with him." She watched him closely for his reaction.

He sat forward a bit more resting his elbows on his knees still staring off across the lake. She could almost see his mind working trying to process what she had said. "Well KP, Some people are just like that I suppose. At least it shows that he is interested in keeping what you have going. Give him time, I am sure you and him will find some middle ground in all of this."

She sat back stunned for a moment, having to force herself to keep from staring at him. Did he just say what she thought he said? The last thing she had expected was for him to try and defend Josh. What was going on with him. Before she and Josh had hooked up officially Ron had been very apprehensive about the whole thing. Maybe it was because of the previous times her and Josh had gone out hadn't lasted more the a few days before they mutually went their own ways. Ron seemed to be getting harder to predict as the days went by. Maybe it was because they were spending less time together lately. Not that she wanted that but they both had their own lives to live now.

While they in college together at Middleton University they had hung out all the time just like they had always done. But then he graduated because the culinary degree he was working for was only a two year course where her Social Sciences course was a four year. With her in class all the time and him starting his career as a chef they wasn't that much time for them to get together. Then when Josh had transferred from the community college to Middleton U. that time seemed to all but disappear when they started dating again.

Ron had seemed a little jealous at first but eventually encouraged her relationship with Josh. It was around that time that Ron seemed to become more withdrawn and somber, a far cry from his usually happy go lucky, nothing can get me down attitude. It had worried her, seeing that change in him. The smiles that occasionally graced his face slowly appeared to become more forced and his shoulders more slumped. As her relationship with Josh progressed and deepened, so did Ron's downward slide until now it was a though he forced himself to be happy around her.

She worried about him but she knew that getting anything from him if he didn't want to talk about it would be next to impossible. He finally

seemed to find a way to resist the famous "Possible Pout." Even her mothers was now rendered ineffectual. One day she had tried to get him to spill finally having to resort to the pout. She nearly hit the floor when he looked right at her when she was in full pout and flatly told her "No." Since that day it didn't faze him in the slightest.

"Well, its getting late. I still need to run a couple of errands before I head home"

She was shaken from her thoughts as Ron spoke and stood up. Glancing at her watch she realized that she had been sitting there dwelling on her thoughts for more then an hour. Silently cursing herself for wasting time with him by being silent she stood up next to him. "Ron"

He turned to her slowly "Yeah KP?"

"You know that I am always here for you if you need to talk, right?"

The corners of his mouth tugged back slightly in a faintest for of a smile as he nodded. "I know Kim. I'm always here for you too." He stepped forward and hugged her tightly for a moment before he hesitantly released her. "Take care of your self, Tell Josh hi for me." He turned and glanced at the lake one last time before shoving his hands in his pockets and walking off down the path disappearing behind some bushes.

*End Flashback*

And that was how it went. It had left her more confused and worried about her best friend then ever before. He seemed so out of touch with her these days. She had seen him around town a few times since that evening. Always across the street or across a crowded store. She had tried to catch up and talk to him but he always seemed to loose himself in the crowd before she got within earshot. He always had a depressed look about him. Eyes cast down to the ground, hands in his pockets, shoulders slumped. She was rocked to her core one day when she saw him talking to, of all people, Bonnie. She couldn't hear their conversation but she saw Bonnie's face suddenly turn into her unmistakable sneer as she let loose with an insult. She saw how Ron's body flinched as the words were spoken and Bonnie turned and disappeared into the crowd with a flip of her hair. Ron simply turned and walked off shaking his head slightly.

She looked again at the book in her lap and picked it up tossing it onto the table next to the chair. She sniffed slightly as a tear made it way down her cheek. She was slowly losing her best friend. Every time she saw him he looked more downtrodden and it was tearing her apart. But what could she do? She simply did not have enough time in her schedule to trek all the way across Middleton, hunt him down and make him talk. Pulling her knees tighter to her chest she wondered just what had lead her friend to this.

She began running a list through her head of when all this started with him and was going on then. Ron's downward spiral in attitude started around the time she had gotten together with Josh. Before Josh, even though they hadn't been talking as much as they used to, Ron had kept his upbeat happy outlook. He had been reluctant to condone her accepting Josh into her life again simply because of her history with Josh. After a while he warmed up to it and supported her. To the best of her recollection, that was about when she first noticed him almost forcing himself to put on a good face for her.

She jumped slightly as another thunderclap ripped through the silence of her thoughts. Wrinkling her forehead in concentration she began probing her memories. The more he supported her relationship with Josh, the sadder he seemed to become. But why? Wracking her brain she worked through any possible reasons for him to have a reaction like that, and eventually come to one undeniable conclusion. With a sinking feeling she realized what was wrong with her friend. "Ron loves me?" she whispered to herself in disbelief. "He loves me and he is ignoring his feelings for me so he can support me being with Josh?"

She shook her head trying to wrap her brain around that possibility. It certainly seemed like something he would do, being the caring selfless person that he is. She had never thought about it much before, but Ron had always been sacrificing himself for her happiness. How many times had me made an embarrassing scene in the hallway at school to draw attention away from some humiliating posiition she had somehow gotten herself into. He had gone up on stage at the talent show and made a complete fool out of himself so she wouldn't miss her chance to perform. He had even gone on a mission alone to help her when Drakken tried to make her disappear during her date with Josh.

She quickly lost count of how many times Ron had destroyed his own social status to help maintain or elevate hers. She cursed herself for suddenly for being so blind. How had she not seen this before? How could she be so naive? "Just when you think you have a good bead on things Possible, it all goes down the drain" she chided herself. Sinking down further in her chair she let her thoughts wander. "He loves me so much that he is willing to let himself be hurt, and in doing so I naturally spend more time with Josh. Unintentionally hurting him again by unconsciously pushing him further out of my life by spending even less time with him. And judging from the way that Bonnie and their other classmates still gave Ron unending amount of flack he probably doesn't hang out with very many other people. At least not now that Monique and Felix moved to California together. My god, how alone he must feel right now."

She sat up quickly as the tears ran down her face. How could she have let this happen to her best friend. Wiping the tears away fiercely she scanned the room and spied her Kimunicator laying on the coffee table. Jumping out of the chair, she practically dove across the room nearly taking out the couch in her haste to grab the small piece of blue plastic that suddenly dominated her thoughts. Josh mumbled something and turned over in his sleep. clutching the Kimunicator to her chest she made her way to the bedroom and closed the door. Punching a few buttons on the device she anxiously waited for an answer.

"Kim?" came a sleepy reply as the screen suddenly lit up with the face of a person who had just been roused from what was most likely a very peaceful slumber.

"Wade! I need your help!" Kim whispered frantically trying not to make too much noise.

"What's up Kim?"

"" she blurted out as she wiped fresh tears from her eyes.

"Whoa Kim, calm down. Take a deep breath and say that again at normal speed"

Kim took a deep breath and forced her sudden emotion surge down to a reasonable level. "Wade, I'm worried about Ron. I just realized that I have left him all alone since I got with Josh. He loves me but I didn't see it because I am with Josh and Ron supports that because he knows it is making me happy but I know he is hurting because of it. I need to tell him I am sorry for being so blind" she burst out.

"Oooook. So you are calling me at...3:30 in the morning because?" yawned a still sleepy Wade as he tried to brush the sleep from his eyes.

Kim took another deep breath and looked down at the screen. "I know you still have Ron chipped. And knowing you, you probably also have his place wired for video and sound, Right?" she asked hopefully.

Wade looked a little sheepish as he replied with a short "umm..yeah."

"Don't worry Wade, I don't care about the ethical aspect of that right now...But we will talk about it in the future" she warned. "Right now I need you to locate Ron for me. If he is home can you bring up the video?" she asked trying to keep a lid on her anxiety.

"One second Kim" the teen replied as his fingers started gliding over the keys on his keyboard. "Ron's at home right now, looks like he is in bed. But I am picking up another heat signature on my sensors. Hold on. Streaming video to you now."

Clutching at her long nightshirt in worry over what she might see, Kim watched as the video window suddenly popped up on the screen. The room was dark but there was just enough light to make out the bed and other furniture in the room. As she watched, another flash of lightning suddenly lit up the room and she could see Ron's form curled up on the bed. She could also see another form sitting on the edge of the bed with their back to the camera. The light from the lightning flash faded as suddenly as it came but she could still make out the two forms. Looking closely she could see the person sitting on the edge of the bed reach out and gently stroke the young mans face. "Its all right Ron. You are not alone" the figure said softly. Slowly the figure rose slightly and laid down placing an arm gently around Ron's body pulling him close. All movement in the small bedroom stopped and only the sound of two people breathing could be heard aside the muted sound of the rain of the roof.

Kim tapped a button on the device and the video window disappeared and was replaced by wades face again. She sat there for a moment trying to absorb what she had just seen. That voice sounded vaguely familiar but she couldn't place it. "Wade, could you run a voice scan on that?"

"Already tried Kim, there is just too much interference from the storm and the echo's in the room to get a positive. All I can tell you is that it is female but I am sure you figured that out already."

"Yeah. Thanks Wade. Apparently Ron isn't as bad off as I thought. I'm going to have to ask him about her next time I see him" Kim looked up at the window still mulling over what she had seen. Who was that woman, and why hasn't Ron mentioned her before?"

"Any time Kim, that's what I am here for. Have a good night" Wade replied with another yawn as the screen went dark.

Kim shook herself out of her thoughts and stood up setting the Kimunicator on the bedside table. She walked back into the living room and pulled a blanket out of a wicker basket behind the couch. She gently laid the blanket over Josh's still slumbering form and placed a soft kiss on his forehead. Turning, she closed the blinds over the window and made her way to the bedroom. Cracking the window open slightly she crawled into bed and pulled the soft comforter over herself. Sighing softly she closed her eyes. "I'm glad he's not alone" she whispered to herself as she slipped off to sleep.


	3. Mystery Woman

AN Here is our mystery woman POV. Enjoy

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She sat in the dark and watched the house closely. Shivering slightly against the wind and rain she pulled the heavy slicker tighter around herself and maintained her vigil. She had been watching him almost an hour. His face highlighted against the dark backdrop of the room he was sitting in. He had barely moved at all in that time aside from occasionally reaching up and wiping at his eyes. She could see the glisten of tears in his eyes each time the lightning flashed, and it tore at her being to see that.

She had her reasons for being there; very good reasons in her opinion. She alone had watched the young mans slow decent into depression while _she_ remained oblivious. At first she had thought that he was just having a bad week at work or possibly a conflict of some sort with _her_. But as the days turned into weeks then into months, she knew that something was very wrong with him. His never say die attitude had always intrigued her. No matter the situation he always seemed to remain positive, in his goofballish way. And he always came out on top, more or less. Then one day he did something that endeared him in her heart forever. Her view of him had changed that day, and she found herself caring about him.

So when she noticed him hanging his head a bit more then usual, or walking with a slightly shuffling gait she became concerned. Thankfully there was a lull in a need for her services at that time, so she started keeping closer tabs on him. Being no stranger to loneliness herself she quickly recognized that signs of someone who was suffering. For as much as she wanted to go and talk to him, the thought of what his reaction to seeing her might be made her keep her distance. So she watched him, looking for any danger signs of him slipping dangerously deep into depression. Thankfully there had not been any, his strong personality keeping him from toppling over past the point of no return.

But as she watched him this night, she saw that he was getting closer to that point. Uncomfortably close for her. She had to restrain herself to keep from going down there. "Hey Ron, How's it going? Want to talk?" How interesting of a conversation that would be she thought. Shaking her head and shifted her position slightly and leaned more against the rock face behind her trying to get a little more shelter from the rain. "If only you knew what I have been going through worrying about your skinny butt" she muttered to herself. She blinked her eyes slowly from fatigue and wondered how she had let herself get used to a "normal" schedule. Back in the day she would just be hitting her stride at this time of night.

She pulled herself from her thoughts as she suddenly realized that his face was no longer visible in the window. She quickly searched the other windows for movement and started to rise when he came back into view. She let her body settle back into its previous position and forced her mind to focus on the business at hand. "I'm not letting you get away that easy Ron." As she watched, his head bent over and he appeared to be looking intently at something. She let out a sigh of relief as she realized that he was writing again. He seemed to be doing that a lot lately. The past month or so at least. God how she wanted to see what he had been writing. She had thought about 'borrowing' that notebook from him one day but he carried it with him every where.

As she watched him, she subconsciously felt her foot start to slide on the rain soaked rock she was perched on. Before she could so much as shift her weight slightly, she let out a sudden "Yelp" as her foot slid free and she found herself sprawled out on the rock in an awkward position. Moving slowly so her other foot wouldn't slip as well, she managed to push her body up and settled back down placing her back flat against the rock face. As she turned her head to look down at the house she felt her blood run cold as she saw his face looking up at where she was. "Did he see me?" she asked herself worriedly. Letting out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding, she saw him turn from the window with a final wipe at his eyes and stand up, retreating into the dark room.

Standing quickly, she made her way down the slope towards the house. She caught herself as she slipped a little in a mud puddle, and quietly approached what she knew to be his bedroom window. The window started to open suddenly and she flattened her body silently against the wall thankful that she had been working her way along the wall up to this point instead of going across the yard. She heard the sound of mattress springs creaking slightly and took a deep breath thankful once again that she had not been spotted. The two close calls doing nothing to calm her nerves, she stood pressed against the wall and waited.

No sound had come from the room for several minutes. Slowly she worked her way down to the window and had just started to try and peek around the corner when she felt her heart twist in her chest. "Why am I alone" a choked sob broke the silence coming from the room. She flattened herself against the wall again as she felt tears start to well up in her eyes as the sounds of crying issued from the cracked window. Not bothering to wipe the tears from her eyes, she leaned her head against the rough brick and listened as he slowly cried himself to sleep.

Taking a deep breath she calmed herself as the sound of crying gave way to stuttered sobs and finally the slow even breaths of a person who was finally asleep. Slowly she worked her head around the corner and peered into the room. She could just make out his form curled up on the bed clutching a pillow to his chest. Finally wiping the remaining tears from her eyes and watched him for several minutes before deciding that he was well on his way to being deeply asleep. She turned and soundlessly made her way around the house to the front door. Pulling a small pouch from her pocket, she withdrew a pick and crouched to work on the lock. "I hope you can understand and forgive me for

this one day Ron" she muttered as the lock finally gave a quiet click and turned slightly. "Glad to see that I haven't lost my touch over the years" she thought. Pulling a small screwdriver out of the pouch she turned the lock the rest of the way until the bolt slid free of the door jamb. Stowing the pouch and tools back in the pocket of the slicker, she silently opened the door and slid inside closing it softly behind her.

Shucking off her slicker, she hug it carefully on a hook next to the door before turning to survey the room. Silently thanking the fact that she knew the layout of the house from having been there a few weeks prior while he was at work she quickly made her way across to the desk and the current object of her attention. Gently picking up the note pad, she paused for a moment listening for the sounds of his breathing coming from the other room. Satisfied that he was still asleep, she moved to the couch that he had vacated earlier and slowly lowered her body onto its soft cushions. With a final glance at the bedroom door she began flipping through the pages.

Tears threatened again and she did nothing to stop them as she read. Her heart slowly working it way up until it caught in her throat and she was forced to swallow it back down to where it belonged. She was stunned at what he had written. While it was not the greatest in the world, his words evoked a steady stream of tears to flow down her cheeks. "I knew you felt alone Ron, but I had no idea you felt like this" she muttered breathlessly. Wiping at the tears that blurred her vision she forced herself to continue, page by page, until she came to tonight's entry.

She could not bring herself to read the words he had scrawled on the paper. Her mind already more then convinced of what her next course of action needed to be. She let the notebook fall into her lap as she closed her eyes and tried to calm herself down. If she went in there this worked up, things would go badly. And right now, the last thing he needed was be rudely awakened and thrust head first into an uncomfortable situation.

As she sat there, she wondered how she had let herself get drawn in this deep. She had never concerned herself with anyone this much in the past. So what made this time different? Why did she find herself caring so much about that happened to this blonde goofball. But even as she asked these questions, she knew the answers. Everything she had seen him do since the first time she met him, had been to help someone else. Even when he had surprised her with that small brightly wrapped box on her birthday, he did it knowing that he was going to catch an earful from _her_. But he did it anyway, any every year after that. There were Christmas presents too, and each time he made a point to show her compassion _she_ laid into him. That was what had endeared him to her, the fact that he was the first and only person to treat her like a normal person since "the incident." Even her boss at the time somehow managed to forget her birthday. And his Christmas presents, when he thought to give them, were woefully lacking. "I mean, come on! Socks?"

Opening her eyes she looked down at the notebook in her lap, then at the bedroom door. Picking up the notebook, she stood and deposited it back on the desk as she made her way to the bedroom door. Gently placing her hand on the knob, she turned it and silently slipped inside the room closing the door behind her. She stood still for a moment before walking across the room to the bed that held the slumbering figure. She sat down gingerly on edge and looked down at him, his face still red from crying. A small, sad smile grace her lips as she reached out and gently caressed his cheek. A jagged flash of lightning cut across the sky suddenly but she ignored it.

"It's all right Ron, you are not alone" she said softly to him as he shifted slightly. Sighing softly she levered herself up and laid down behind him. She tentatively placed her arm around him and pulled him close. Smiling to herself, she felt his body relax in her embrace. Closing her eyes, she soon felt the tension of the nights events take their toll as the steady sound of his breathing lulled her to sleep.

Her body's internal alarm clock unceremoniously pulled her from her slumber. Looking around she was startled to see the sun just starting to filter through the trees. She looked down and smiled sleepily seeing him curled up next to her. Glancing at the clock, she saw that she still had about 30 minutes before his alarm would wake him for work. Laying her head back on the pillow, she sighed softly and tightened her embrace. "We are defiantly going to have a talk about last night Ron. I cant keep doing this." she whispered to him.

She lay there curled up with him, her eyes alternating between him and window. Seeing the sun finally crest over the horizon she reluctantly released him and rose. She had stayed as long as she dared. Quickly she made her way to the living room and started to head for the door. Stopping suddenly she slowly turned and looked at the desk. Smiling slightly to herself, she crossed to the desk and bent down grabbing the notebook and a pencil. After scribbling down a quick note to him and went back to the door. Frowning as she noticed the puddle under her slicker, she went to the kitchen and grabbed a dish towel. Going back to the puddle she quickly wiped it up and threw the now dripping towel through the doorway to the kitchen, nodding silently to herself as it landed perfectly in the sink. Turning back to the door she grabbed her slicker and exited the house. Closing the door she knelt down and, after retrieving the pick and screwdriver from her pocket, proceeded to re-lock the door.

she sighed suddenly as the bolt slid home and sat back on her heels. "I hope you can understand why Ron. Why I came here last night and why I couldn't be here when you woke. I just pray that you leave me a sign that you want to talk." Forcing herself to rise she turned and retreated away from the house into the shrinking shadows of the trees. Just before the house exited her field of vision she heard the sound of an alarm clock going off and a grunt as the alarm suddenly went silent. Shaking her head with a small smile, she walked further into the trees trying to sort out the events of the past 6 hours.

* * *

AN I know, I still haven't divulged who she is. Anyone care to venture a guess? I left a bunch of clues to her identity. I know that I haven't had much dialog or anything yet, but with the nature of the poem this story is based around, I really felt the need to set the stage before letting it unfold. The next chapter will have a lot more dialog and action. Please R&R


	4. What else could happen?

Ron cracked his eyes open slightly searching for the source of the offending noise. Spying his alarm clock, he grunted as he slammed a fist down on the snooze button and closed his eyes fully planning on drifting back to sleep. Sighing deeply, he shifted slightly and was just about to lapse back into the rather nice dream he was having, when a faint scent tickled his senses back into alertness. Not bothering to open his eyes, he sniffed again and was rewarded as his nose caught the scent of...lilacs? -What are lilacs doing in my room?- Forcing his eyes open, he looked around the room slowly turning his head so be could view it in its entirety. There it was again, stronger this time.

Mentally shrugging, he rolled over and proceeded to pass out until the alarm clock once again shattered the peace of his dream. Cursing silently as his hand sought out the "off" switch, he reveled in the memory of his dream about a certain green eyed person who had come to dominate his unconscious thoughts lately. The memory of the dream faded to bits and flashes as his mind clawed its way to being fully awake. Propping himself up on one elbow, he looked out the window through sleep hazed eyes. Seeing the sun starting to rise above the trees he resigned himself to forcing his body out of bed. Finally maneuvering himself into a sitting position on the edge of the bed, he glanced at the clock let out a startled "Ack."

How long had he laid there thinking about that dream? Obviously much too long as the clock showed he now had exactly 30 minutes to get showered, dressed, and get to work which was easily 25 minutes away on a good day. Jumping off the bed he lunged for the bathroom pulling his shirt and boxers off as he went. He fell into the shower and twisted the knobs yelling as the ice cold water hit his warm body. Recovering from the shock, he grabbed the bottle of shampoo and bar of soap. "Who says you cant pat your head and rub your stomach at the same time?" he laughed as he worked his whole body into a lather. Stepping into the stream of water coming from the shower head he let out another yell as the water had now come to near boiling. Frantically twisting at the knobs he finally got it down to a tolerable temperature and washed the lather off. Ejecting himself from the small shower stall, he grabbed at a towel on his way to the closet. Continuing to dry off, he tossed clothes from the closet to the bed. After abandoning the towel he threw on a pair of socks and put his pants on backwards. Groaning in frustration he shucked the pants off and pulled them up again with the zipper facing the front. Slipping on his shoes he yanked the shirt off the bed and made a mad dash for the living room.

After tugging the shirt over his head, he ran to the desk and was just slipping his wallet into his pocket when he saw the open notepad. Stopping suddenly, his momentum carried the weight of his body past the point where his shoes had become glued to the carpet and he ended up looking at the underside of the desk. He lay there for a moment having forgotten about running late for work. Had he just seen what he thought he saw? Slowly picking himself up off the floor, he peeked over the edge of the desk and stared at the notebook. He cautiously stood up the rest of the way never losing sight of what should have been the neon green cover. Instead he was looking at a page that was adorned with handwriting that was not his own. Casting furtive glances around the room, he reached out and plucked the notebook off the worn wooden desk.

"You are not alone Ron. It hurts me to see you like this. I know how being alone feels. If you want to talk, please light a candle and place it in the window when ever you feel you are ready to do so" he read aloud.

Ron stared transfixed at the words on the page. That was all it said. No signature, no indication of who wrote it. He read it again and again searching the words for some hidden clue as to who had been in his house last night. All he could find was those words written in a slightly looping handwriting. With a sudden stab of fear he realized that whoever it was, had also read what he had written in those pages. His knees started to shake and he barely made it to the couch before they gave out. Collapsing onto the cushions, he was startled when his nose once again caught the faint scent of lilac.

His head started to swim and he closed his eyes waiting for it to pass. After taking several deep breaths his head started to clear and he stared down at the notebook that he still clutched in his hand. "OK, this rates about a 7.5 on my weird shit 0 meter." He closed the notebook and laid it tentatively on the couch beside him. -Someone came into my house last night, read the book that contains things I would never let anyone else read, and left me a note asking to talk?- He sat forward and closed his eyes placing his head in his hands trying to sort out all the jumbled thoughts that were careening around in his brain.

His thoughts were broken as a ringing sound erupted in the silence of the room. Shaking himself out of his thoughts he searched the room for the source of the sound. Realizing that it was his cell phone, he leaned over the arm of the couch and picked up the phone pressing the answer button.

"Hello?" he asked nervously.

"Ron, is that you?" spoke a deep voice with a moderate British accent.

It was his boss. Ron looked at the clock and felt his pulse stop seeing 11:53 unmistakably displayed in bright red numbers. He was 3 hours late for work. "Yes sir" he answered automatically.

"Are you all right Ron? I was concerned when you didn't show up at 8:30."

"Y-Yes sir, I'm fine." His mind suddenly jump started again and immediately kicked into over drive. "I'm sorry about not calling you earlier sir, something happened last night that I am trying to sort out."

"Is everything all right?"

"I'm not sure yet. I think someone was in my house last night."

"Say what? Someone broke in? Are you OK? Did they take anything?"

"That's just it sir, the windows aren't broken and the door is still locked. I don't think they took anything and I didn't even know until I was leaving this morning."

"Have you called the police?"

"Not yet; I know what they would say anyway. No damage and nothing was taken, it would be a waste of man hours to peruse anything. I know someone was in my house last night though."

"I understand. Tell you what; things are pretty slow today so why don't you take the day off and sort things out. I will go ahead and mark you down for tomorrow off as well in case you need more time, but we will need you back on Friday for the symposium luncheon."

Ron pulled the phone away from his ear and stared at it in silence for a moment. _Did my boss just give me 2 days off?_ Coming back to his senses he put the phone to his ear again. "I..uh..I don't know what to say sir. Except thank you and I will keep you updated. Unless something else happens I should be in tomorrow"

"Please don't force yourself Ron, we are going to need you at 100% for Friday, and make sure you get some sleep. Stress and exhaustion do not mix well together. Take care Ron."

With a click the line went dead and Ron sank back into the couch absentmindedly pushing the "off" button on the phone. "Maybe an 8.0 then" he said to himself as he wondered just what else was going to happen today. _Well, at least I have time to get this figured out now_ shaking his hear to clear it, he looked again at the notebook. While he was intrigued by the fact that someone took the time and energy to come and let him know that they WANTED to talk to him, he was more then a little unnerved that they decided to break into his house to do it. _A simple letter or e-mail would have sufficed_

Getting a sudden stroke of intelligence, he pried himself off the couch and grabbed the communicator off his desk. Pressing a few buttons he went back to the couch while he waited for a response.

"Hey Ron, whats up?" came Wade's voice through the devices speaker.

"Funny you should ask Wade, because I have been trying to figure that out for the past 4 hours. From what I can tell, someone broke into my house last night, read my notebook and left me a message on it." Ron replied hoping against hope that somehow Wade would be able to help him.

"Someone broke into your house? Any signs of forced entry? Any thing taken?" Wade became more then slightly concerned.

"Not that I can tell" Ron replied looking around the room. "It looks like the only thing that was touched was my notebook."

"Hold on one second, I'll scan the video files and see what I can find"

_Video files?_ "Hold up a second Wade. What video files?" Ron demanded, annoyed that the super genius had possibly wired his house without his knowledge.

Wade suddenly looked like a kid with his hand in the proverbial cookie jar. "Ummmmm...the video files that came from the cameras in your house" he responded hesitantly.

"The cameras in my house?" Ron exploded suddenly. He felt as though he had been rudely violated. Violated not once but twice in one day. "What in the name of all things sacred, made you feel the need to put cameras in my house without my knowledge?" Ron's hands shook as he tried to restrain the urge to yell at the face on the screen. "Do you have me chipped as well?"

Wade was suddenly at a loss for words, he had never seen Ron act like this before. Not even when he had found the cameras in his parents house. All he could was nod his head slowly and brace for Ron's response.

Ron's face was replaced with a mask of anger as his voice took on a hard, biting edge. "We have been friends for more then 6 years Wade, I forgave you when I found the cameras you put in my parents house. I forgave you again, albeit at Kim's insistence, for the cameras you had in her house. But not this time Wade. I simply cannot fathom what would posses you to place cameras in my house and a tracking chip on me without at least asking me first. Did you stop to think that I might agree to it if you had asked me first." Ron paused mid rant as he felt his temper slipping. He knew that Wade had nothing but his best interests at heart, but that did nothing to condone the young teens actions. "I want you to deactivate ALL the cameras and microphones you have in my house. Right now! As soon as possible you will remove them and they will stay removed. Are we clear Wade?"

Wade could only stare at his monitor in mute shock. Kim yelling at him about ethics and "spying" on her and Ron was one thing, this was on a completely different level. Finally he managed to squeak out "transparently."

Ron had managed to calm himself down a bit. "I have trusted you to watch my back on missions Wade, Kim had trusted you. Ever GJ has trusted you on the rare occasions when we have had to join forces with them. And yet you don't trust me enough to bother with asking if you can place cameras in my house. For future reference, I would have let you. Sometimes it is comforting to know that someone is watching your back for you. But it not comforting in the slightest when someone is watching you and you don't know it. I am going to hang up now Wade, before I say something that I might regret in the future. Do not try to call me back. I will let you know if and when I feel that I can forgive you for this." with that Ron disconnected the call and flipped the communicator over in his hands. After prying the cover off the back, he pulled the power cell out and flung both it and the communicator onto the desk. Standing up, he turned and attacked the couch cushions with a vengeance trying to vent his frustrations.

* * *

AN I suck at dialogue so please forgive me. Don't take this chapter the wrong way, I like Wade, I think he is cool as hell. But "spying" on people who trust you and call you friend is just plain wrong. Anyway, sry this one is short. chap 5 is coming soon and it WILL have Ron and our "mystery woman'. Mayhap even a little of Kim's and Wade's responses to Ron's outburst.


	5. Strange Happenings

AN This is a LONG chapter. Sry but that's just the way it came out. You have been warned. I would like to take this opportunity to thank AtomicFire for helping me get through a case of writers block that I had about mid chapter.

* * *

Ron finally collapsed onto the couch after taking out his frustrations on the poor, unsuspecting cushions. "The nerve of Wade bugging my house like this" he mumbled to himself as he lay there catching his breath. Sighing deeply he rolled over and stared up at the ceiling. _What else is in store for me today?_ Grumbling slightly, he rolled off the couch and made his way to the kitchen to fix some breakfast.

After fixing a quick meal of eggs and toast, he plunked his body down at the table and picked absentmindedly at the food as his mind mulled over today's events. This was easily the strangest day of his life and it wasn't even half over yet. His thoughts floated back to the message. Who ever had left it for him had obliviously been in his house, and if they had wanted to hurt him, they could have easily done so while he was sleeping. So that ruled out most all of the villains that Kim and him had faced in the past. Of course that still left the possibility of them wanting to cause him emotional pain, but he laughed at that notion. His emotions couldn't get hurt any more then they already were...could they?

Eating a few pieces of egg he pondered whether the mystery person could actually be sincere in what they had said. It was within the realm of possibility, however far out on the edge it may be. Abandoning his partially eaten food, he stood up and went into the bedroom to change into more comfortable clothes. After pulling on a pair of cut off cargo pants and a loose t-shirt, he looked around his room. His eyes stopped on a what could only be described as a very large nest on top of the bookcase next to his bed. He sighed as he thought about his little buddy who he hadn't seen in more then a week.

Rufus was over at the Possible house visiting his family. About a year ago, Jim and Tim had gotten a naked more rat of their own. They missed having Rufus around after Ron had moved across town and they needed someone to test pilot their inventions. As it turned out they had ended up getting a female mole rat and Rufus had taken a keen interest in her. It hadn't taken him long to train Roxanne for testing the twins inventions and before long they had become mates. Now the twins had a whole litter of testers and Rufus had a family to look after. So Ron had worked out a deal with them. Every other month, Rufus and his family would stay with Ron and the rest of the time they would live with the twins. Rufus would usually come and visit with Ron every week or so piloting some new flying machine. Ron missed him when he was gone, but over all he knew Rufus was happy with Roxanne.

His eyes strayed to the bed, something didn't look right. His bed was a king size because they were having a sale on them at Smarty Mart one day that was just too good for Ron to pass up. With the bed being as big as it was, Ron usually only slept on one side it leaving the other side untouched. He suddenly noticed that the covers on the normally untouched side of the bed were messed up slightly, as though someone had lain down on them. His weirdness scale took another jump as the realization hit him. Who ever had read his notebook, had also laid down in bed with him.

"This day just keeps getting stranger and stranger" he muttered under his breath. He reached up and pinched his arm hard to make sure he wasn't dreaming. Rubbing the now sore spot on his arm confirmed that he wasn't dreaming. Shaking his head, he decided to go for a walk to help clear his head. After pulling on a pair of hiking boots, he grabbed his cell phone and made for the door. Stopping a few feet short of it he turned and headed to the couch. He picked up the notebook and slipped it into one of the cargo pockets as exited the house.

The storm that morning had left the day feeling very cool and refreshing. He stopped at the edge of the porch and breathed in the piney scent of rain that was still lingering. A slight breeze blew through the trees as he stepped off the porch and started walking down the well worn path down that lead to a small pond. He stuffed his hands in his pockets and randomly kicked at stones that littered the path as he

made his way into the woods. He continued to try and sort things out as he feet went into auto pilot mode guiding him towards the pond. The more he thought about everything that happened while he was sleeping, the clearer the picture in his mind became.

Who ever had visited him was obliviously female, or at least he prayed that they were as his body shivering involuntarily at the thought of a guy climbing in bed with him, so that narrowed down the list quite a bit. The only females that knew where he lived, at least the ones he was aware of, were Kim, Jennifer from work, Yori, Tara, and Monique.

He ruled Kim out quickly enough. She defiantly would have called him before coming over, and she wasn't the type to just up and break into someone's house and leave them a note. Jennifer never really showed much interest in him. She had given him a ride home once when his motorcycle refused to start one evening after work. He knew Yori liked him, but she respected him too much as a fellow Yamanuchi Alumni to do anything like entering his house without his permission. She was still in Japan as far as he knew. Tara had a slight crush on him back in high school, but the "food chain" had made her keep her distance back then. She had come over once with Kim to watch some movies, but had remained aloof the entire night. She was engaged to some guy she had met at Upperton University to boot. Monique was in California so that ruled her out as well.

Sighing in frustration he found himself back at square one and more confused then ever. He still didn't know who had spent the night with him and now he was out of viable options. The sound of moving water trickled into his thoughts and he realized that he was standing at the edge of the pond. He looked across the water and watched a couple of ducks glide by before sitting down on a large flat rock right at the waters edge. Pulling his legs up into his lap he closed his eyes and began to meditate allowing the sound of water rippling across the rocks and the wind in the trees to permeate his thoughts and calm his mind.

His body visibly relaxed as the sounds of nature deepened his meditative state. The world around him faded into a blurred mind-scape as he attained a tranquil plateau in his subconscious.

He was completely unaware of the intense green eyes that watched him from across the water.

* * *

She sat with her back against a the rough bark of the tree, her hands absentmindedly playing with a small twig she had picked up off the ground. Twirling it slowly in her fingers, she thought back to where she had been that morning. She smiled quietly to herself remembering the feeling of sharing a bed with someone, even if it wasn't her bed she was sharing. It had felt good having someone that close to her, being able to feel every time they took a breath or shifted slightly. Listening to their heart beating steadily as they slumbered with out a care in the world. A tear surfaced at the corner of her eye and proceeded down her cheek. She hadn't wanted to let that feeling go so soon after finding it, but it was either that or being forced to explain her presence to someone who probably would not want to listen at that point in time.

It had been so long since she had felt the warmth of another, she had been shocked when she realized that she scarcely remembered how nice it was. She dug through her memories but found only faded shadows and thoughts of what might have been. She pulled her knees to her chest and wrapped her arms around them tightly as she looked out across the serene surface of the water. She couldn't remember anything but the feeling of having no one there.

Of course she hadn't been completely alone. There had been people around her, people to talk to. But they had amounted to little more then barely civil conversation on their part, and edgy, snappish remarks on hers. Never being able to allow herself to get even slightly emotionally attached to some one for the better part of 10 years because of her job was hard on her. Even when she wasn't working, her appearance seemed to push most people away. It had been like that ever since she was 10 years old. Ever since "the incident". She didn't like to think about that day. In an instant, her life had been stripped away from her. People who she had called friend now avoided her like the plague. Society as a whole shunned her, calling her "freak" behind her back. Even her parents had abandoned her over it, not wanting to ruin their reputation and status as pillars of the community.

And so in the end the only people she had left in her life was her brothers, and that was mainly due to them being in the same boat she was. She had never really liked them, being the only girl next to 4 boys was not an enviable position for her. All 5 of them were head strong, and they all wanted things their way. It had led to some very interesting and painful fights. But she forced herself to endure their company for lack of a better option.

Eventually the 5 of them were begrudgingly accepted by society. Her and her brothers decided to try and use their abilities to help the people who had once cast them out, after all it was the ethical thing to do. "If we have the ability to do things that others cannot, then it is our duty to do them" Her brother Herman always used that line when he was trying to convince them to do something.

After 5 years of what seemed like absolute torture putting up with 4 egotistical teenagers, she finally got fed up and left. Out on her own for the first time in her life, she had no idea where to go from there. She had no money, no job not that anyone wanted to hire her anyway, and no one to go to for help. So she had to resort to stealing the things that she needed to survive, at least that was how she justified it to herself at the time. She soon realized that she was very proficient at it, and she gradually moved to stealing to feel alive.

She enjoyed the thrill of being somewhere she wasn't supposed to be, trying to take something that wasn't hers. She lived for the chase, actually allowing herself to almost get caught before disappearing into the night. She finally did get caught one day trying to break into a warehouse. The man who caught her turned out to be an evil scientist who, for some strange reason beyond her comprehension, was bent on taking over the world. Who wants to rule the world anyway? He was impressed by her skills and did not balk at her appearance as most did, not that he had any room to judge someone else on their appearance. He was in need of someone with her abilities and managed to convince her to work for him.

And so began the next 4 years of her life, a professional thief. She enjoyed her work, and soon began to expand her skills learning martial arts. No one stood a chance of stopping her once she set her eyes on a prize. She reveled in the fact that no one could touch her, she had the skills and the ability to back it up. At least that's how it was until Kim Possible showed up on the playing field. For the first time since she had started thieving, she had a real challenge. Someone who could keep up with her in a fight and still manage to keep her from her goal.

She trained harder then ever trying to out do her nemesis, but as she became better, her opponent would match her. The epic game of cat and mouse was joined, neither willing to give quarter to the other. But regardless of how much joy she gained in thieving and batting little miss perfect, she still felt there was a hole in her life. What good was being on top if there was no one there to share it. She tried to ignore the feeling, just as she had done in the past.

Being alone became second nature to her, so much so that she tried to tell herself that she was happier and better off alone. She had even managed to convince herself that it was true. But that belief had been abruptly shattered the day that a small, brightly colored package with her name on it had been left for her. It had shocked her to say the least. The fact that someone have taken the time and energy to find out the date of her birth, and then got her something to celebrate it left her feeling a multitude of emotions. She was more then a little surprised to find that it was in fact Kim's sidekick Ron, who had left her the package. It took her a long time before she finally convinced herself to open it. On the one hand, she harbored a deep distrust of Ron for the simple fact that their lives were on completely opposite sides of the coin. And it was his job to stop her from doing hers. But on the other, no one had ever shown that kind of compassion towards her and surely someone who took the time to do that would not have done it just to hurt her in the end.

She found herself watching him closer during her encounters with Kim. She would glance at him mid fight to see how he was fairing against Dr. Screw loose, more often then not getting a fist or foot to her stomach for her troubles. She would shadow him occasionally during her time off, hoping to understand why he would do something like that for her of all people. As she observed him, she gained a new understanding of just what selfless sacrifice and devotion were about. She would watch in disbelief as he would intentionally make a spectacular fool out of himself for someone elses benefit, usually Kim's. And the fact that he did it time after time without regard to what it did to other peoples view of him gave her an unshakable respect for him. More then once she had ended up leaving her boss with a number of bruises for referring to Ron as "the buffoon" or somehow managing to never remember his name no matter how many times she reminded him.

She wasn't obsessed with Ron, just concerned. She realized that she was beginning to care about him. She would worry about his well being while trying to defend the latest evil scheme from him and Kim, often times to the detriment of her mission. She had started to question her ability to do her job when he was involved. Never had anyone affected her this way. Coupled with the fact that he was for all intents and purposes, her enemy, she was for once at a loss as to what to do about it. She couldn't bring herself to turn her back on her boss as he was the first person who had treated her as an equal instead of an outcast or a tool, but at the same time she couldn't put her own safety on the line because of her feelings towards Ron.

Her delema was reaching epic proportions in her mind when some higher power took mercy on her and gave her a way out. Without warning, her boss was literally crippled by a heart attack one day. All of the doctors confirmed that the next one would most likely kill him. Gone were his plans of world conquest, as was his need for her services. Unfortunately for both of them, a secret government organization known as Global Justice found out about the recent developments and arrested them before they could so much as think about disappearing.

Being on the most wanted list in 11 countries was certainly not in her favor. She was looking at doing a lifetimes worth of jail time for the crimes outlined in her mile long rap-sheet. She had somehow managed to work out a plea-bargain with GJ, in exchange for inside information of various other villains in the world they would reduce her sentence to only a 10 year stint in a federal prison. Much to her shock and admiration, Ron spoke up on her behalf and convinced them to drop her sentence even further on the basis that she would be laying her own neck on the chopping block by ratting out the other villains.

After serving only 14 months of a 2 year sentence, she got out on good behavior. She was out on her own once again. No home, no job, but this time she had a means to take care of herself tucked away in several bank accounts in Sweden that GJ had not been able to find and seize. With her illustrious past as a thief, she was able to secure a position with a multi-national security consulting firm. She ended up moving to Middleton not long afterwards. She had always liked the small town atmosphere that Middleton projected while having all of the big

city attributes contained in the Tri-City area. She had become so absorbed in becoming a legitimate productive member of society that she had barely had time to reflect upon the dilemma she had in her previous life concerning a slightly goofy sandy haired boy.

That dilemma came back to her full force on Christmas eve. She had been just getting ready to head to bed when a soft knock sounded upon the door of the apartment she was staying in. She had reluctantly opened the door expecting to find carolers or someone collecting for the needy. Instead all she found upon her door step was a large, brightly colored box with "Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukah" stenciled in bold letters on the top. Contained with-in she found enough presents to cover the two birthdays and a Christmas that had passed while she was incarcerated.

As she sat and looked at the gifts assembled in front of her, the hole she felt in her life came to the forefront in her mind. It was Christmas eve and she was sitting in her apartment, alone. Alone on the one occasion of the year that was supposed to be about spending time with those you care about. She didn't get much sleep that night as she sat up berating herself for the choices she had made that had

conspired to bring her to this point.

The majority of her free time over the next few months was spent trying to work up the courage to go and talk to her former adversary. For someone who could strike fear in the hearts of most men, she was afraid of going and talking to someone who was 4 years younger then her. She took to watching him again, hoping maybe an opportunity would present its self. As the weeks had gone by, she had started to notice the decline in his day to day attitude. As his depression had deepened, so had her concern for him.

She had continued to watch him, hoping that somehow someway he would pull himself out of it. But that hope had been snuffed out last night as she had watched him crying his heart out to the heavens. She knew that if she didn't do something soon, that she might never get the opportunity to talk to him. So she did the only thing that she could think of. Leave him a message that, with any amount of luck, would snap him back to reality and give her the opportunity she had been searching for.

* * *

She sighed heavily as she opened her eyes and looked out across the still waters of the pond. She hoped her message would have the desired outcome. If not, she was going to have to find a more drastic, direct way to get the message across. She stood up and stretched glancing at her watch. "Almost noon" she muttered to herself. She still had 8 hours until he would get home from work and she was exhausted from the nights events. Picking up the small pack that contained her slicker and a few other items, she started to head back along the shore line. As she walked the wind picked up whistling through the trees. As she moved carefully around a large tree, she saw the path that lead up the hill to the clearing where her car was parked.

The crunch of a boot on gravel caught her attention and she looked around searching for the source of the sound. She froze as she saw Ron slowly coming down the same path that she had been planning on following up the hill. _What is he doing here? I thought he had to work today_ She stood stone still only allowing herself to breathe for fear of giving away her presence. The pale green sleeveless shirt and knee length dark gray pants she wore did little to hide her form among the bright green foliage around her.

With a silent sigh of relief she saw him stop at the edge of the water and lift his head looking across pond. She took the opportunity to step silently behind a tree trunk. She peeked cautiously around the tree and her eyes went wide with worry. He was no where in sight. Leaning out a bit more, her eyes caught a flash of red. She remained where she was for a few more minutes before she felt it was safe to advance a bit more. Moving silently among the trees she angled up the slope, heading away from the water. She stopped as she approached a fallen tree and trained her eyes on the spot where she had seen the red flash. She could see him now, sitting on a large flat top rock right next to the path. He appeared to be meditating. She moved further to her right hoping to get a clearer view. If he was meditating then she would be safe as she made her way to the path and subsequently up the hill to her car. If he wasn't, then he would see her as soon as she stepped beyond the tree line.

She bent and picked up a small stone. Positioning herself behind a tree, she leaned out and tossed the stone in his direction. The stone clacked loudly as it landed on the gravel of the path but Ron didn't move a muscle. Thanking the powers that be for her good fortune, she hitched up her pack and stepped out from the tree line. She looked at him and started to head up the hill when she got an idea. Stepping back into the trees, she knelt down and unslung her pack. She dug around in it for a moment and pulled out a small note pad and pen. Placing it on her knee she wrote out another note.

She reread it after she had finished and pulled it free of the note pad. After stuffing the pad and pen in her pack, she slowly poked her head out of the trees. Seeing Ron still in the midst of meditating, she emerged from the tree line and approached him on cats paws. _Who says just that because you are serious about something, means you cant have a little fun with it_ She smiled as she stopped beside him. She looked down at the note in her hand and brought it up to her lips. Pulling it away she looked at the lipstick stain she had made on the paper. She folded it in half carefully and placed the note in his lap.

Quickly moving back up the slope, she paused to pick up her pack before continuing up to her car. As she opened the door and dropped into the drivers seat, she sighed getting the sudden feeling that this was going to be a long night. She started engine and slipping it into drive let the car slowly idle up the road a bit before stepping on the accelerator. She still had a lot of things to do before she could head home and get some sleep. Smiling to herself, she cranked up the radio as she pulled out of the trees and drove off down the street.

Slowly allowing himself to slip out of his meditative state, Ron opened his eyes and blinked a few times to clear his vision. He frowned slightly as he looked at the water, meditating had not helped him as much as he had hoped it would. He still did not know who his mystery guest had been last night, but by visiting his dreams again he was able to get a vague semblance of her aura as it had slightly altered the course of them.

He unfolded his legs and slowly stretched the cramped muscles. It was then that he noticed the small slips of paper that was sitting in his lap. He tilted his head slightly staring at it as it fluttered slightly in the breeze. _She was here again. She was standing not more then a foot away from me._ He picked up the paper with one had as he looked around thinking about what just happened. His hands were shaking as he opened the paper.

"I am sorry for any confusion I have caused you. It is not my intention to harm you, but rather to help you. I want to talk with you Ron, but I know it will have to be on your terms. The ball is in your court, don't drop it"

The note was signed with a kiss in dark red, almost black lip stick. Ron shook his head and sighed. _I'm going to have to rethink my weird-o-meter if this keeps up because it just went off the scale_ He sniffed the paper and caught the scent of lilacs, as he knew there would be. There was only one way he was going to get this sorted out. He slid off the rock and looked at the pond again before turning and heading up the path to his house.

As he walked he couldn't help but get the feeling that this was going to be a very long night. He was going to get to the bottom of this one way or another. Before he realized it, he was in front of his house. He walked onto the porch and set down heavily on the bench that was leaning against the wall. He sat and stared at the clouds as the floated across the sky. How he wished he could be up there with them, floating on the winds without a care in the world.

The sound of a bird cawing loudly snapped him back to reality. Mumbling curses at the bird he stood up and stretched. Turning he walked into the house and closed the door behind him. He looked at the clock. "5:40?" he stated in surprise. -I didn't realize I was down there almost 7 hours- His stomach growled in response to his thoughts, letting him know that he HAD been down there that long. He walked into the kitchen and opened the fridge.

He pulled out some deli meats and proceeded to fix himself a sandwich. He took a bite and walked into his bedroom as he chewed. He swallowed and took another bite before setting the sandwich down. Going around his room he picked up the clothes he had tossed about that morning, hanging them carefully back in the closet. He took another bite and set to work making up the bed. Doing mindless house work was always something that helped him calm his mind. If there was ever a time when he NEEDED to calm his mind, it was now. He finished with the bed and popped the last of the sandwich in his mouth as he went around the room picking up and straightening. Doing anything to keep himself busy, he moved on to the living room and finally the kitchen.

Just as he finished wiping down the counters and looked at the clock again. "That was a good way to spend about an hour and a half" he mumbled as he went back to the living room. Looking outside he saw the night was already well on its way to claiming the sky. He tried to keep himself busy straightening and re-straightening everything on the shelves and book cases. Finally running out of things to do, he looked at the clock. "8:20."

He sighed and finally resigned himself to fate. Going to his desk, he slid open the bottom drawer and pulled out a candle and a lighter. Lighting the candle, he pulled back the shades on the window and carefully placed it on the sill. "I hope she is watching tonight." He turned on the radio and lay down on the couch letting the music envelop his mind as he zoned out.

The soft knock at the door barely registered until it came again, louder this time. His eyes snapped open and he sat up on the couch turning the radio off with the remote. The knock sounded again and he could hear a slight shuffling sound coming from the other side of the door. He stood up and slowly walked to the door taking several deep breaths to calm his nerves. _Now we will see what this is about_

Opening the door he looked out and his breath caught in his throat.

Standing on the other side of the door was a stunningly beautiful woman he had seen all too many times. Her deep green eyes stared into his as her hand played with a lock of her jet black hair. The bright light coming from the porch light over her head gave her slightly green tinted skin an exotic appearance. Her lithe body shifted slightly as she released her hair. "Hi Ron" her voice was soft and soothing as her hand fidgeted with the hem of her shirt.

Ron had never thought of Shego as being a nervous woman in anything she did, but as he saw her now she appeared almost timid. He realized that he wasn't the only one who had been afraid of this moment. "Hi Shego, long time no see" he managed to force out after getting his lungs working again.

She seemed to relax slightly as though she had been expecting a different response. "For you Ron, not for me. I have been seeing you a lot lately. That's why I am here." Her timid manner from a moment ago had been replaced by the cool, collected exterior he was used to seeing. Her hand still fidgeted with her shirt and he could tell this was as hard for her as it was for him.

Swallowing hard he took a deep breath and forced himself to relax. "I see" he said as he stood to the side beckoning her through the doorway. "I have a feeling we have a lot to talk about."


	6. Altered Perceptions

AN Now things start to get a bit dicey.

* * *

"What do you mean you don't know where Ron is? I thought you said you had him chipped" Kim demanded.

Wade looked very uncomfortable, shifting constantly in his chair. "He asked me to turn off the cameras and chips" he replied with a hint of shame in his voice.

"I can understand turning off the cameras, but why the tracking chip? You have never turned that off before" Kim's composure started to slip. She cared about Ron, and after the realizations she had made the previous night that concern had increased.

Wade started to say something before he clamed up again. Ron's words to him had hurt, but he saw the truth in them. Despite his intentions he had been basically spying on his friend. His fingers taped a few buttons on his keyboard as he showed Kim the recording from earlier that day.

Kim's mouth dropped open in shock. She had never seen Ron so angry, not that she blamed him much though. She hardly noticed when the video ended. Reining in her temper for the moment, she looked pointedly at the slightly pudgy face on the screen. "Wade?"

"Yes?" Wade did not like the look she was giving him right now. He knew better then to try and avoid it though, it would be a lot easier to just face the music.

"Remember what I said last night about discussing ethics later?" Her voice was hard enough to cut glass. While she knew that Wade had Ron's house wired, she didn't know that it was done without his knowledge. "I think its time"

* * *

Shego walking through the door barely registered with Ron, his mind was going a mile a minute. _Shego was the one who left me the notes? She was the one who lay in my bed?_ Of all the people he had looked at for this, she had been one of the last.

As she walked in, Shego noticed that the room was a lot cleaner then it had been that morning. She knew from months of watching him that compulsive cleaning was one of Ron's ways of dealing with stressful situations. A pang of guilt entered her mind for a moment before she shoved it down, overruling it with her concern for him.

Turning to look at him, her mouth opened to say something before she thought better of it. _Best not to try and push things too fast, let him set the pace_

"What's this all about Shego?" Ron spoke up first as he closed the door and sat down on the couch. He took a moment to himself before his head tilted up to look at her.

The soft, yet urgent tone of the question surprised her. Biting her lip she tried to hold back the tears that threatened when she looked into his eyes. A world of pain and despair, loneliness and fear was reflected back at her and it mirrored a world she knew all to well. "This is about what I see when I look at you Ron, what I see when I look into your eyes" Her voice quavered slightly and she forced herself to take a calming breath before continuing. "I can't really explain how I feel about this, all I know is that it hurts me."

Saying that Ron was surprised by this admission was putting it mildly, he was completely baffled. Shego's mannerisms were totally different from what he was accustomed to. Granted she had spent over a year in prison and was now legit, but could that change someone this much? He opened his mouth a few times to speak but his confusion prevented his brain from processing anything. "What do you see?" His brain finally managed to unstick its self.

Shego's hands started to tremble slightly and she clasped them together holding them at waist level. This was new territory for her, never before had she actually needed to try and connect with someone at an emotional level. As she stood looking at him she felt a tear detach its self and forge a path down her cheek. She didn't bother trying to wipe it away. "I see someone who is hurt and scared. Someone who has always put others before himself and is now on the outside while all those he cares about are on the inside." -If there is some higher force in the universe, please let him understand what I am trying to say- "I care about you Ron, and as strange as it may seem to you for me to say that, it is the truth. I know what loneliness can do to a person, especially someone who has always had people around him as you have. I don't want you to hurt yourself or worse trying to get rid of the pain." Another tear followed the first and still she ignored it.

"And what is it exactly that you are afraid I might do?" The shock of her revelation had stunned him for a moment but his curiosity won out. Just how well did she think she knew him?

"I'm afraid that you might try and do what so many people your age do when it seems the world had turned its back on them."

It took a bit for him to mull through what she had said before the realization hit him. He had to force himself not to laugh at the utter absurdity of the notion. Fighting back a slight smile he looked into her worried eyes. "That is something I would NEVER do. Suicide is a permanent solution to a temporary problem. I thought you knew me better then that."

Nodding silently, she sighed in relief as she looked back into his eyes. "I know that you are not that type of person Ron, but people do strange things sometimes. As a person you are as rare as they come in this day and age. The world needs more like you and I would never forgive myself if by some chance you did something irreversible with your life." She sighed and sat at the opposite end of the couch from him her eyes glancing around the room slowly, trying to find somewhere to look besides him. "I know you may not believe me on this but I really do care about you." she watched him out of the corner of her eye nervously awaiting his reaction to her words.

Her words slowly sunk in and he was left feeling more confused then ever. He blinked a few times as he stared into the dark corner of the room. For several long moments this was the only reaction she received from him. "Why? Why do you care what happens to someone like me

Shego?"

"We don't have the best history in the world. More then once we have literally been at each others throats. We have traded blows and insults more times then I think either of us cares to remember. So to say that I was surprised when you gave me a birthday present is a gross understatement" She watched him for a reaction and received a confused yet intrigued look in return. Taking that as a good sign she continued. "I still don't know why you did that Ron. Your caring nature, the way you seem to see good in everyone, maybe just downright pity. I don't know. Regardless of your reasons, that simple gesture of compassion you made that day means more to me then you realize"

"How so?" He was looking at her intently now. The confusion was still there but the intrigue far outweighed it.

Shego looked at him sadly. "People treating you like a normal human are few and far between when you look like I do." She paused for a moment and spread her arms indicating her body with its pale green complexion. "So you doing what you did out of the blue like that really made me think about some things. Truth be told, if you had not done that, I probably would not be here right now. After that day I found my self watching you a lot. I was worried about you. Concerned for your safety. And I had no clue as to why. It started to affect my work, my life. Everything that I thought I had a good handle on started to change and I felt like I was left in the dark wondering what to do. Then Dr. Doofus had that heart attack and we got arrested. As I sat in that prison cell, the gravity of everything came crashing down. I was going to prison for a long time and there was really nothing I could do about it. I could have broken out but where could I go? I was still a wanted woman and would had to spend the rest of my life on the run." Her voice suddenly caught as she was flooded with memories of those long nights sitting on a hard jail cot staring out a small window. She tried to fight back the tears but they refused to be denied their escape.

Ron saw this and got up threading his way through the living room to the kitchen. Years of being around Kim when she had these kinds of emotional overloads had given him a keen insight into what helped in this situation, although an emotional Shego was something he had never anticipated having to deal with. He filled a glass with some ice water and grabbed a small handkerchief from the piles of neatly folded clothes atop the dryer. He went back to the couch and sat down gently holding out the water and handkerchief to her.

Shego looked up after a few moments realizing that he had returned. Taking the water from him, she managed to take a small swallow before smiling at him in gratitude. Words still failed her as she wiped at her eyes silently grateful that she had forgone putting on eye liner or mascara tonight. She was staring down at the ground trying to compose herself when she felt a pair of arms encircle her shoulders and hold her tightly. She stiffened for a brief moment before she melted into the embrace and let the tears flow freely again knowing that no judgments would be made by him. She couldn't remember the last time she had just sat and cried, it felt good. Pain from emotional wounds long past and forgotten washed over her and the tears continued unabated.

Ron sat holding her and tried to sort out the thoughts racing through his mind. He didn't know why he did it, wrapping his arms around her like he did, but it seemed the thing to do at the time. He continued to hold her as her body trembled, his hand softly stroking her hair trying to sooth her. This whole situation was off the edge of the map as far as he was concerned, and unorthodox situations called for

unorthodox actions. He laughed silently to himself. _Me holding Shego while she cries her heart out seems about as unorthodox as it gets _ "Its all right Shego, just let it out." He sighed and rocked slightly with her. Even as he did this, his conscience was waging a silent battle with him

_What the hell are you doing Ron, this is Shego_

_Shut up, we both know she needs this right now. Do you want to deal with Shego on an emotional overload?_

_Not really, no. But still, this is Shego_

_Go look at something shiny, I'm busy and you are not helping_

He had to admit, despite the unusual circumstances, it felt nice holding her. She finally stopped trembling but did not bother to move from her current position. "Synnove" The word was spoken so faintly he barely heard the sound. "My name is Synnove. Shego died when I got out of prison." Her voice was so small, he had trouble making out the words between the tear choked breaths. After several more minutes she managed to pull herself together and slipped slowly, almost begrudgingly pulled from his arms. She wiped at the tears with the small piece of now damp fabric and took a deep breath t steady herself. "Sorry about that Ron, I don't know what came over me" She said softly with a hint of shame in her voice. She continued looking at the carpet, reluctant to look at him.

"Its all right Synnove. Everyone is entitled to that sometimes" His voice was quiet and gentle. He looked at her for a moment at a loss as to what to do next. His eyes swung over the room looking at nothing in particular while he tried to figure out why he was so disheartened at the sudden loss of contact. Sure he cared about her, he would not have sent her those gifts otherwise, but just how much did he care? _Obviously more then I thought_

She felt a small smile grace her lips at his words. Ron truly was a one in a million kind of guy. "I wouldn't be here today if it wasn't for you Ron, I would probably still be sitting in the god forsaken broom closet they called a cell. I never have gotten a chance to thank you for everything you have done for me, so for what its worth...Thank you. You gave me a second chance at a normal life." She looked up at him and her smiled widened at seeing the bemused expression he was wearing. "By the way, please just call me Syn, that's what everyone called me before I became Shego."

He nodded in acknowledgment as he continued to stare at her. Suddenly realizing what he was doing he looked away and his hand began to play with a loose thread on his shirt. "I'm sorry if I seem somewhat out of it right now, this is all new territory for me"

"Don't be sorry, I don't exactly do this everyday either." She sighed suddenly. "I'm the one who should be apologizing for dumping all of this on you out of the blue like this." She worried her lip for a moment as she felt the pang of guilt from earlier rise up again. _He must have been going crazy all day thinking about all of this_ She rose suddenly. "I shouldn't have done this to you Ron, I'm sorry. Ill just leave you alone now." She stumbled slightly as she moved towards the door feeling the tears start to brew again. Her hand had just closed on the door knob when he spoke.

"Syn? You don't have to leave."

The emotion in his voice caused her to pause for a moment. She closed her eyes and swallowed hard as she turned the knob and started to pull the door open. Her movement stopped again when his hand came to rest lightly upon her shoulder.

"Please don't leave Syn. I..I don't want you to go."

Opening her eyes, she turned her head and looked at him. His eyes were pleading with her and she felt her already weak resolve crack. She allowed her hand to pull the door closed before releasing the door knob. Taking her hand gently in his, he lead her back to the couch and sat down. Following his lead she sat down next to him.

He squeezed her hand slightly and was surprised when she returned the gesture. "I know this is hard for you Syn, its hard for both of us. I would imagine this is about the most unlikely position either of us have ever even thought of being in. But we are here none the less and I would hazard a guess that we both know why." His voice quaked as he spoke with his head bent low to his chest. She started to speak but he raised his head placing his finger on her lips. "Please let me finish this before I loose my nerve. I care about you, I have for a long time now. Ever since our first encounter I have been captivated by you. It wasn't because of your appearance..I mean it was but not for the reason you think. It was just that you looked so strange...not strange in a bad way..just...your..umm..Dammit it all to hell" he groaned as he hit his forehead with the heel of his free hand.

Stifling a chuckle, she watched him stumble over his words and got perverse pleasure from seeing him so flustered. She knew it was wrong to get pleasure from watching him struggle to save face over his slip of the tongue, but he was just so damn cute doing it.

He took a deep breath before trying to explain himself again. "I was captivated by how exotic you are." He stopped for a moment before deciding that it had actually come out the way he had intended. "Green skin and the ability to have a Bar B Q at a moments notice aren't exactly normal but then again I have never set much stock in being "normal" as I am sure you have noticed. I was intrigued to say the least. So I had Wade..." he paused for a moment his features contorted in anger. She noticed this and made a note to ask him about it later. "I had Wade try and find some info on you but all he was able to come up with was your birth date and a few other things that Drakken had in his computer files. I had no recourse other then watching you during the times that our paths crossed. The more I watched, the more entranced I became. I found it strange that with as much energy and passion as you put into your fighting, you would never take advantage of someone when they were down or injured. The fact that you maintained a since of honor in what you did surprised me, not many villains had any honor to speak of. As time went on ,my perception of you changed as I learned more about you. I started to care about you, as a person. When your birthday came around I felt it was only right to celebrate it. Despite the "dressing down" I got from Kim about it, I kept doing it because it felt right. I didn't think that Drakken would have bothered, he always seemed to see you as a tool instead of as a person."

He blinked suddenly and shook his head. "I'm sorry, I'm rambling. In short I care about you Syn" After a moments thought, he looked up and his blue eyes met her deep green ones. "And I am glad that you came here tonight."

* * *

A/N BTW Synnove is pronounced (Sin-o-vee)


	7. All Bets Are Off

She sat in muted silence as her brain absorbed and processed his admission. On the one hand she was glad that he had wanted her to stay, on the other she was curious as to why he was taking this so well. If someone had broken into her house and then admitted that they had been following her around for months, she would probably be more then a little pissed off. She supposed that he had his reasons, getting him to reveal them would prove to be a chore though. For as open a person as he was most of the times, he was very guarded about a lot of things.

He always kept himself very contained and reserved as far as showing emotions goes, what he showed on the out side was but a tenth of what he was really feeling. Kim had never known judging by the way she acted, either that or she didn't care but that didn't seem right. She always seemed to take his demeanor at face value. Either way, the calm albeit somewhat confused exterior that Ron had been portraying thus far piqued her curiosity. "Why are you taking all of this so well Ron? I mean, this is well beyond the realm of normality, even for you or Kim."

Ron smiled suddenly as part of his old joking charm peeked through for a brief moment. "I've scheduled a freak out episode for later, right now I don't think it would help much." He chewed his lip and withdrew into his thoughts for a moment before seeming to deflate a bit and sink into the couch. "This is all just a tad overwhelming to me at the moment, I really don't know how to react to it all."

"I'm not surprised by that Ron, actually I would be a bit concerned if you did" She looked at him and chewed the inside of her cheek as she contemplated. "If you don't mind my asking, what exactly has been going on the past couple of months? I have only seen the aftermath so to speak."

Ron closed his eyes and laid his head against the back of the couch, this wasn't something he wished to discuss but he needed to let it out before it consumed him. He knew that this question was coming, but that didn't make having to answer it any easier. He wanted to tell her, really he did, but he had never been good at talking about his problems. In the past he had always buried his emotions to get away from having to deal with Kim feeling sorry for him. He had never been sure if she really felt bad for him when things like this came up, or if she was doing it simply out of pity. But sadly those days were gone now. He couldn't lie to himself, he missed Kim terribly, the walls that had slowly developed between them had left many holes in him. Holes that he had tried to fill up with work. That had not worked out all that well. Cooking was something that he had always greatly enjoyed, so burying himself in it wasn't that hard and it didn't do much to stave off his troubles. "Before I get into that, do you want something to drink? This is gonna take a while" he

spoke without moving his head from its position.

Her eyebrows shot up as her mouth dropped open slightly. She was glad that he wasn't looking at her, that would have raised some interesting questions. She hadn't expected it to be this easy to get him to talk about things. _This must go deeper then I thought. Probably best to tread lightly so he doesn't __close up on me_ "What have you got?"

He raised his head off the couch back but didn't look at her. "Water, soda, tea, the usual stuff."

"Any alcohol?" She didn't drink very often but tonight seemed a good night to indulge herself.

He chuckled quietly as he looked over at her. Somehow he wasn't all that surprised by her inquiry. "What's your poison?"

"Whiskey if you have it. Preferably single malt but I'm not picky."

He smiled at this and levered himself off the couch. "Coming right up madam." He walked into the kitchen and retrieved a glass from the cabinet before kneeling down to rummage through his liquor cabinet. As he move bottle after bottle his frustration grew. He knew he had a bottle somewhere but he couldn't remember where he put it. Moving from cabinet to cabinet as he continued to search for the elusive bottle.

As Ron searched the kitchen, Synnove was pacing in the living room. This was getting deep. A lot deeper then she had thought it would get. She had anticipated some wariness and confusion on his part. Open acceptance, open for Ron any way, was not something she had expected. _So much for being able to rehearse this_ Nothing to do now but to ride it out and let the chips fall where they may. She didn't like it but she did not have any choice in the matter. Grunting in resignation she sat back down to wait for Ron to get back. She normally preferred not to have touchy feely emotional bonding moments, that was one of the reasons she had separated from her brothers. But there was something about this situation that made it seem more tolerable, she couldn't put her finger on it but she knew it was there. Hopefully a little alcohol would make this easier to get through.

"Ahh, there you are!" Ron pulled the bottle from the back of the cabinet and held it up triumphantly. He didn't know how it had ended up in there but he had found it and that was all that mattered. After grabbing several beers from the refrigerator, he piled everything on a tray and went back into the livingroom.

"Sry that took so long, the bottle was playing hide and seek with me" he laughed briefly and set the tray down on the coffee table before resuming his seat on the couch. He opened his beer and took a long drink before settling back into the soft cushions of the couch. Thoughts careened around in his head as he stared off into space. How much should he tell her? How much did she really want to know? Why did she want to know? How had he gotten himself into this? He cut off his musings before he confused himself any more. A slight movement caught his eye and he turned his head toward Synnove, he saw that she had poured herself a glass and was now looking at him as she sipped at the amber liquid.

Seeing that he was now committed to this, he set his beer in his lap and closed his eyes taking a few moments to himself before he started. "Have you ever been in a situation where everyday, no matter what you did or didn't do, you were ridiculed and made fun of? Where nothing you did seemed to allow you gain even one iota of respect from people?" He swallowed hard as he looked up at her, feeling more then a little bit of relief as she nodded sadly. That relief was short lived as he remembered what he had read in Global Justices files about her past. Her youth was harder then his was and yet she was here trying to comfort him. He mentally chided himself, _You know damn good and well that she has had a worse time of things then you have and for a lot longer to boot_. "As I am sure you know from our varied history, I don't exactly rank all that high on most peoples lists. Somehow I just seem to blend into the background until I perform a spectacular display of buffoonery. So with that taken into account, most people seem to look at me as little more then some moron who followed Kim around the world for 7 years and occasionally managed to help her out with my dumb skills."

He reflected on his statement for a moment before continuing on. "After a while I guess I just got used to it and accepted my social pariah status. It didn't faze me too much back in the day, having people take pleasure from my pain, I even managed to use that to my advantage on a few rare occasions. I never really put much store in other peoples opinions of me. It was high school after all." He chuckled suddenly "I actually enjoyed it a bit from time to time truth be told, being able to make people laugh and forget about their troubles for a few brief moments."

He sighed and downed the rest of his beer before setting the empty bottle on the table. "Then high school ended but the teasing and ridicule continued" a doleful tone took over his voice and he sat forward resting his elbows on his knees. "I didn't think much of it at first but day after day, month after month it continued. Gone were the days of people laughing in amusement. The insults and jeers became harsher and it started to hurt more then it used to. I tried to shrug it off, I have been putting up with people giving me shit most of my life, but now it was really starting to get to me. People I don't even know were starting to give me hell." Ron paused and stared at the floor. Just thinking about it caused the proverbial knife to twist.

Synnove watched him in silence. She wanted to say something, but what? What could any one say that would lessen the pain, a pain that she was all to familiar with. Her life after the "Incident" was not unlike Ron's from a certain point of view, and she was no stranger to people trying to hurt her for their own enjoyment. Fortunately her personality, with a little bit of comet power thrown in, had allowed her an outlet for her misery. There had been no shortage of targets and eventually most people had learned that pain begets pain, those that didn't learn the first time got a not so subtle reminder. Ron didn't have the luxury of an outlet like she did. Not only did his personality not allow him to hurt someone else, but he didn't have the abilities to back it up. That left Ron with no choice other then to deal with it and try to ignore the anguish. A loosing battle no matter how you looked at it.

"So I started to withdraw from society as a whole." She was snapped from her reverie as Ron started to speak again. "That's one of the reasons I'm living out here now. I just got tired of dealing with the bullshit." His voice was strained and his eyes were clenched tight. She slid across the couch cushions

and enveloped him in her arms. Seeing him like this ripped at her heart strings forcing her to action. He tensed for a moment, then melted against her as the stresses from the past several months culminated in this moment and slowly started to slip away. He was only subconsciously aware of where he was at the moment, he needed this right now and by god he was not going to be denied.

How long they sat they didn't know, nor did they care. Two tortured souls finding solace in each others company. No words were spoken between them, they sat each drawing strength from the other. Each second they spent in the others comforting embrace seemed to stretch into hours as years of pain condensed into mere moments.

Neither noticed the barely audible click as the stereo turned on. Soft notes filtered through the speakers making their way to the two figures on the couch.

I wanted you to know I love the way you laugh  
I wanna hold you high and steal your pain away  
I keep your photograph; I know it serves me well  
I wanna hold you high and steal your pain

Two pairs of eyes slid open slowly and looked around. The soothing yet haunting voice encompassed the room, the lights seeming to dim slightly.

The worst is over now and we can breathe again  
I wanna hold you high, you steal my pain away  
There's so much left to learn, and no one left to fight  
I wanna hold you high and steal your pain

They looked at each other almost daring to ask. They leaned in, each tightening their arms around the other. A soft glow began to fill the room as the lights dimmed further.

'cause I'm broken when I'm open  
And I don't feel like I am strong enough  
'cause I'm broken when I'm lonesome  
And I don't feel right when you're gone away

Their eyes closed again as they let the music wrap around them shutting out the rest of the world. The words that mirrored the the souls of the two figures permeated the room. The glow grew brighter and became more distinct. One glowed a deep blue, the other a bright green.

'cause I'm broken when I'm open  
And I don't feel like I am strong enough  
'cause I'm broken when I'm lonesome  
And I don't feel light when you're gone away

They stared intently into each others eyes as the notes from the guitar slowly died away into nothingness. The stereo emitted a soft click as it became dormant again. The room was awash with green and blue hues as the lights died out completely. As one the two figures moved towards each other and their lips met.

An aqua glow filled the room and became blinding to the figure standing by the front door. With a smile the figure set the remote for the stereo on the table by the door and stepped out into the night closing the door behind them. _I guess I didn't have to worry after all_


End file.
